Hi Elena! Some people use "partner" because they feel it more accurately represents their relationship. That they are a team. Sometimes "partner" is used because it is more general, and could mean they are married or "more serious" than dating. It depends on the person for exactly what they mean with this term. Hope this helps!

Why DO English speakers say 'partner' instead of boyfriend/girlfriend? Because these words may sometimes suggest (a) being quite young (b) having a lack of long-term commitment. Look at it this way: If you're 17 and dating someone, he's your 'boyfriend'. If you're 47, been together for a couple of decades and have a house/car/joint bank account/dog/kids, he's your 'partner'.

Hi, Elena Why *do English speakers say 'partner' instead of 'girlfriend/boyfriend'? Couples may say this because they are unmarried, and they feel that they're too mature to use the terms 'girlfriend/boyfriend'. Instead of 'partner', you may also hear the term 'significant other'. Some married couples use the term 'partner', but it's not common. In fact, I've never referred to my husband as my 'partner' when speaking about him to another person. When speaking to my husband, I've said, "We're partners in this!" However, I wasn't referring to our marriage; I was talking about a joint venture of some sort. I hear 'partner' quite often among same-sex couples. Cambridge Dictionary: *Partner: a person’s partner can also be the person to whom someone is married, or to whom the person is not married but with whom they have a close relationship. *Significant other: a person with whom someone has a romantic or sexual relationship that has lasted for some time and that is likely to last longer. I hope this helps!

I don't know if it's a North American English thing, but "partner" can often also be used as a way to avoid specifying their gender. At least in the past it sounded that way a little, but I'm pretty used to hearing it nowadays in Europe.

Hi Elena, I've noticed partner being used more by same-sex couples. I agree with the other answers though. It might depend on the context, person's background and the country/area where they live. In my opinion partner is not as common as people saying wife/husband/girlfriend/boyfriend. Hope that helps.